Study: Good news for grads’ job searches

FRESNO, Calif. – New college graduates are getting the message about how tough it is to find jobs these days.

They’re starting job searches earlier, looking outside their fields and going to graduate school to become more marketable.

All that work appears to be paying off: Almost 25 percent of 2010 college seniors who started their job hunt before graduation found employment by the time they finished school – up from about 20 percent last year, according to a survey by the Bethlehem, Pa.-based National Association of Colleges and Employers, a nonprofit organization.

That’s still a far cry from 2007, when the economy was booming and 51 percent found jobs before graduation.

There are glimmers of hope. For example, employers plan to hire about 5 percent more new college graduates this year than last year, according to an NACE survey. But students increasingly are waking up to the realities of the job market, said Edwin Koc, the organization’s research director.

“One of the biggest reasons that more have a job (this year) is that they tended to be more flexible in their approach, they’re more willing to accept an offer than students were last year,” Koc said.

The change since last year is obvious, he said.

“The extent of the economic decline had not sunk into last year’s class” at the time of the survey, he said.

A high unemployment rate contributes to the difficulty new graduates face. Students have learned this and are starting their job searches earlier this year, said Rita Bocchinfuso-Cohen, director of career services at California State University, Fresno.

In past years, she said, it was more typical to wait until after graduation.

Students also realize they’re competing against laid-off workers and others with more experience, said Natalie Culver-Dockins, dean of workforce development at Fresno City College.

Nationally, a greater percentage of students are headed to graduate school this year – 27.4 percent compared to 25.6 percent last year, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers. This helps them avoid the job market altogether while better preparing themselves when they eventually look for a job.